When to 3-Point and When to Wheels-Land Your Taildragger

The definitive answer to the question; when should you wheels land your trail dragger, and when should you three point land it? While they can be used interchangeably, there are certain situation which requires a tailwheel airplane to be wheeler landed or three-pointed.
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[@LetsGoAviate]

Completely understand airplane propellers - kzbin.info/www/bejne/nqfFoJxsrJaNb6M STOL takeoff theory explained - kzbin.info/www/bejne/l3vHYqt7oseKhbc

[@user-qw1gf2zd2u]

Once a pilot learns to reflexively control tail height by moderating brake pressure, the risk of a nose-over is eliminated, and wheel landings become the safest and best method in any gusty or crosswind situation. In most taildraggers, differential brake steering is far more positive and reliable than either rudder or tailwheel steering, whether the tail is up or down. Whenever rudder and/or tailwheel steering does not immediately accomplish the desired result, the most effective way to exert and maintain precise directional control is to add in some differential brake steering. Learning tail-up braking and controlling tail height with brakes allows pilots to maintain precise control of their taildraggers in practically any wind conditions. Wheel landings offer better visibility of the runway and/or obstacles, better rudder authority prior to touchdown, and the ability to choose exactly when and where to touch down, rather than just waiting (very vulnerably) for the lift to run out, as is the case in every three point landing. After touching down, as rudder authority begins to diminish, differential braking becomes the primary steering method until the tail is let down, which can be as late as the pilot wishes. Adding power to increase elevator authority and tail-up braking to counteract the resulting increased thrust allows pilots to keep the tail up until stopping completely if they wish. The tail can then be let down softly by reducing power. Alternatively, the tail can be let down softly immediately before stopping by applying as much brake pressure as required to prevent it from falling rapidly. For more details and a series of exercises for developing these skills, see “The Art of Avoiding Ground Loops,” available on Amazon.

[@mikepittman8295]

A wheel landing goes through the same point of transition is a three-point, so be careful

[@Captndarty]

@@mikepittman8295at 1/3d the speed…

[@chipcity3016]

All wheelers end in three points anyway so why carry more energy near ground for longer? Wheelers physically make no sense.

[@skyboy1956]

@@chipcity3016 Better tell that to DC-3 pilots. They never make a 3 point landing.

[@healerf18]

You're a brave man for wading into this topic! :D I'm an Aviation Medical Examiner in Alaska and I see a lot of pilots, many of whom own and fly taildraggers. I always ask "Wheelies or three-points?" It's a fun poll. Roughly 80% prefer wheel landings and virtually 100% of Part 135 operators prefer them. I've had a few tell me they never allow their pilots to three-point. I own and fly a Cessna 180 and learned to fly it from three very experienced bush pilots. Every one of them taught me to wheel land in all conditions except three-points for short field grass and gravel. I think the three-point comes much more naturally for pilots since almost all of us learn in tricycle gear airplanes ("hold it off, hold it off, more right rudder!"). It takes work to master the wheelie. But those that do generally believe it provides better control through all phases of a landing (and no, using a bit of differential brake to maintain center-line does not cause a nose-over.) Thanks for posting!

[@dwaynemcallister7231]

Thanks for your comment, I grew up watching my Dad fly Cessna 180's and Helio Courier's in the 1960's and '70's Canadian Arctic, I would observe his technique of course. He would vary the technique depending on the situation but on the average day it was a wheel landing. His take-off in the Helio was almost always tail high and lift off cleanly, in some very early years he had a Helio that came with cross wind gear, seems to me he would land three point or tail lowish with that airplane, if I recall correctly. That's a long time ago, I have a Homebuilt British kit plane called a Europa Monowheel, it has a tailwheel and does need to be three pointed always on landing.

[@LetsGoAviate]

I have been known to dive into dividing topics 😆 Probably because I see no point in picking one or the other since both has it's pro's and cons. That's interesting, thanks! When I did my tailwheel conversion training initially years back, the wheel landing came so naturally to me. I struggled with the 3 pointer and only did a 3 pointer every 10 or so landings. Then I started getting into short field/STOL type landings, and when I couldn't get my landing roll shortened, I knew I had to use the 3 pointer. Fast forward, now I very much prefer the 3 pointer (in the 172 taildragger as well as our previous plane which is a Kitfox clone). I pretty much only wheel land in gusty headwind. Yep I hear ya, you can use the differential braking to maintain centreline with the tail up. That's not what I'm on about though. If you get a massive crosswind gust with the tail up, one that weathervanes you a lot, I'd like to see you stomp on one brake without nosing over. And if you don't, it's off the runway with you, split second reactions. I know 2 pilots that left the runway doing wheel landings in a gusty crosswind. Both are somewhat high hour pilots and managed not to groundloop, but went off the runway nonetheless.

[@ZhihengCao]

FINALLY A DEFINITIVE ANSWER TO WHEN TO USE WHEEL LANDING!!! THANKS!

[@rogermatheny5512]

Tail has to come down sometime. Might as well start there

[@wadesaxton6079]

4K hrs of tail wheel time and I agree. May as well find out if you have enough rudder in the 3 point attitude from the start.

[@markhilsen2528]

Douglas DC-3 in civilian life is wheel landing only, 3-point not permitted. The military C-47 or Dakota does not prohibit 3-point landings but warns of adverse handling characteristic associated with stall and engine drop off. Nice showing a T-6, though. The strange thing about the Texan/SNJ/Harvard is that when facing a nasty crosswind, a 3-point gets you safely on the ground l, tail down l, and airspeed decayed to taxi way better than wheel landing.Sure a wheel landing gets you on the mains and rolling … but sooner later, you have to get the tail down, tail wheel locked and holding the centerline, as you slow. That’s when you’re vulnerable and wishing you hadn’t got it your faith in the wheel landing. The 3-pointed is a misnomer l: you’re really wing-down-into-the-wind and make runway contact with the upwind wheel •and the tail wheel• for longitudinal control! When under control, lower the downwind wheel and roll out straight. Not necessarily the easiest crosswind landing you’ll ever make, to be sure.

[@ChrisPinCornwall]

Brilliantly explained, thank you so much. I'm a tricycle pilot slowly trying to get to grips with taildraggers, this was most helpful.

[@LetsGoAviate]

Great to hear! Thanks

[@willjohnson3907]

In the old airtractor radial days guys would put geared 1320s with huge dc3 props on them and if you wheel landed them you’d have a bad day.

[@vacuumelite2065]

I am never going to fly a plane. However, I am an engineer and I really enjoyed your concise overview. 😊

[@LetsGoAviate]

Thanks 🙂

[@gutsymovies]

The Pitts biplane community generally sticks to 3 point to avoid prop strike on landing. There are people who wheel land a Pitts, however. I was taught 3 point and that's what I always do.

[@marcoantonioandresherrero7439]

I have a Courier and my FI told me to never try a 3 point landing with a crosswind, because if youre slow, close to the stall, you have no control over the longitudinal axis, so you cant roll the plane if a gust suddenly wants to push one of your wings up, also the slower you are the lower control you have on your rudder, so moments before touching down and being able to correct using the brakes, the nose of the airplane can aim into the wind because it is pushing way to hard along the tail... Speed means security and assure you have enough roll and yaw control. So i cant agree on using 3 point landings if you have a severe crosswind, better have speed roll into the wind opposite pedal, touch down with one main wheel and keep it until the other wheel touches the ground, keep ailerons deflected and use brakes to maintain the nose straight.

[@hgiudful]

Well explained. I prefer wheel landing my Stearman for forward visibility reasons. For my Cub, I prefer three point. I found that if I try to land tailwheel first then I get the three point stance every time.

[@iancaesar427]

RAF pilot notes for Auster AOP 6 are pretty firm on 3 point only due to the aircraft's tendency to bounce in the wheel landing. The AOP 9 is forbidden from 3 point due tendency to drop right wind.

[@adrianusseto1737]

Thank you !

[@darrenbell3534]

Learned to fly 2 different tail draggers, The flying school for the Tiger moth wanted a wheeler, the flying school for the more modern Skyfox type wanted a 3 pointer. The theory if I recall was that the tiger moth needed more airflow over the rudder to as not to try turn itself around and kill you, the Skyfox was more responsive with rudder at lower air speed and so they wanted a 3 pointer and have the tail wheel in control as soon as possible.

[@Coops777]

What a great discussion and one I havent ever seen before in a video. What you say makes perfect sense. Three point is my favourite for the cub as it lands a little shorter. But your point about secondary lift off or ballooning is such a valid one. Yes the taildragger should always be 'flown on' and not stalled on in a strong headwind

[@jimmydulin928]

Yes, in strong headwind we will have to fly it on, thus wheel landing. No we don't have to increase airspeed to do this. Get slow enough on short final to sink. This will require dynamic throttle to nail glide angle and rate of descent to the exact needed spot. At this power/pitch airspeed, the Cub (most small airplanes) can be angled across wide runways from the downwind corner (exact needed spot) to the upwind big airplane touchdown zone marking which is a thousand feet. In a 20 knot headwind component of a strong crosswind, the Cub should be able to be stopped without braking in fifty feet. The Stromberg carburetor will gulp (sounds like the engine quit) with necessary rapid dynamic throttle movement. Windmilling prop will get you going again. Really. No tailwheel airplane will wipe out the gear, wing tip, and prop/engine in a ground loop going 20 mph ground speed. Not saying we need to ground loop, but when fast the airplane is totalled. No, we will not be stalled. Yes, we will need ground handling or the fuel truck to block crosswind to taxi.

[@antiquehealbot6543]

I've never flown a tail dragger and don't have any plans to fly one but this was very interesting video. I'll keep this in mind in case I fly one.

[@OfMoachAndMayhem]

The P51 Pilot's Handbook states: "To be safe, land on the wheels first" - If I wasn't aware of the difference between taildragger landing methods, I'd be alarmedly wondering what other options there are for landing on first.

[@lozjones315]

Tail-low wheeler works fine in most aircraft. Once you can consistently acheive that at touch down, of course. Sort of the best of both worlds. Does require some decent skills though.

[@excellenceinanimation960]

Good video Thank you! Hope to own a tail dragged some day!

[@Tom-tk3du]

The RV-8 has a reputation for not liking to 3-point except perhaps with aft CG. I ran out of elevator the first time trying to 3-point mine while solo. Most of us wheel them on. Use what works best for you. Know your cross-wind limits and remain within them. The best way to stay out of trouble is to avoid it.

[@ulrichb3937]

Excellent explanation ... and btw if in doubt the wheel-landing (two point) is the safer one, because some aircraft have the tendency to start jumping out of the three poit attitude. Thanks for the video.

[@TheFleetflyer]

Not production aircraft, but many of the Reno Unlimited race planes need to be both taken off and landed on three points due to prop clearance.

[@aviatortrucker6285]

Wheel landings have always been the scariest because sometimes it’s just a sensation that you’re leaned over too far and that you will have a prop strike. My instructor told me to look to the side to see the angle of attack against the horizon. That in itself is scary as soon as you take your eyes off the front of the airplane, you risk the possibility of a ground loop.

[@mmascitti]

I prefer three points landings but a good pilot has to master the two points as well.

[@LetsGoAviate]

I agree

[@RV7FlyPer]

Wheel landing on rough or bumpy/hard grass runways usually leads to the aircraft goes flying again - I prefer 3-point in those conditions. If you could address the runway condition too instead of only focusing on the wind that would be great 😃 thanks for a great video

[@williamaldenblank6218]

The Mosquito was normally wheel landed. If you tried to three point it, the extended flaps would block the air flow to the rudder and a loss of directional control was likely.

[@saltnsunshine9127]

Quicky Q2 and Q200s cannot wheel land due to their extremely low prop clearance. KR2 struggles immensely with three point landings due to the poor pitch authority at low airspeeds, and will usually tail strike first

[@sparkyr22]

I always, save the tiny wheel!!! :)

[@gonek8814]

I was doing my taildragger training on PZL-104 Wilga, and its AFM clearly says that only 3 point landings are recommended. Great video BTW.

[@LetsGoAviate]

Interesting! Thanks

[@jimmydulin928]

Good coverage of all the variables. Wolfgang, in Stick and Rudder, talks about finishing the touchdown in a three point attitude all slowed up and ready to squat. But he doesn't go into the variables as you do. Because tw airplanes are becoming more expensive and are totalled when ground looped with considerable airspeed, I think we should go back to his advice regardless of technique used to finish. I have alway taught the power/pitch deceleration on short final coming into ground effect technique. If we are in a three point attitude with power (well below Vso in low ground effect) just before touchdown, we are as slow as possible. Now simply levelling the fuselage gives us the wheel landing options you mentioned without enough extra airspeed to total the airplane in a ground loop. Yes, serious gust spread requires an active throttle. We bring the throttle into active and dynamic play as glide angle and rate of descent control when we pitch up to decelerate (with power) enough on short final to get a sink requiring us to bring the throttle into play. Balloon, close throttle and then adjust throttle. Sink, full throttle and then adjust throttle. LOC fatalities, more prevalent than they were mid last century, result from too much airspeed. Driving it on with the wheel landing technique is good wind management, but the extra airspeed is not needed nor is it safe. Get into the three point attitude slow and near the beginning of the runway and then three point or wheel land to your heart's content.

[@LetsGoAviate]

Thanks. You are touching onto something valid. This is why I said the wheel landing doesn't necessarily need faster approach speed than the 3 point, but I don't go into it any further. I'm in agreement about the dangers of approaching too fast. Of course I also didn't talk about the variations of the wheel landing, like tail low, tail high etc. which gives even more control.

[@LetsGoAviate]

@@chucklemasters6433 Totally incorrect information? Please let me know what exactly I said is incorrect, unless you were just being dramatic. What you wrote regarding aileron input is correct, but that doesn't make anything I said incorrect. I thought it was obvious, but this video is about the differences between the 3 point and wheel landing, and the pros and cons of each. While ground loop obviously enters the conversation, the main point of this video is NOT about how to prevent a ground loop, or I would have titled it "How to Prevent a Ground Loop". I repeat, the emphasis of the video is on all factors making the 3 point or wheel landing more or less safe, and is thus about decision making, NOT about technique.

[@timking2822]

Great video. It's interesting to note that wheel landings transition into a three point position, and at this point you're exposed to the same risks.

[@LetsGoAviate]

Yep as I said at 5:04 Same risks, but risk is a lot lower when the tail comes down as speed is barely enough to hold the tail up, much less enough to go flying again if there is a gust.

[@captratty2167]

I liked the video because it was clear and unbiased. The great pity is few pilots training today ever get near a tail wheel aircraft, so don't develop some basic skills that are just as relevant today as they always were. When the crosswinds blow hard or the runway is slippery - no matter whether it's a light single or a heavy jet you fly - the pilot with tail dragger time will be ahead of the game Besides which, modern nosewheel aircraft are a bit lame, tail draggers are FUN.

[@matthewhyde1491]

Surely the speed at which the tailwheel touches the ground is different:- On a 3-point landing, when the tailwheel touches the ground the elevator is fully ‘up’. On a wheel landing, when the tailwheel touches the ground the elevator is fully ‘down’ and much slower. It seems to me the main difference is the ground handling between tailwheel touchdown speed (3-point, ie stall speed) where the plane is susceptible to gusts making the wing fly again but has good rudder authority, vs a wheel landing keeping the tail up and wing at low-to-zero incidence, reducing/eliminating the chance of a gust making the wing fly, but at the cost of losing rudder authority until the tailwheel touches down. This suggests to me that it’s better to wheel land with a gusty wind straight down the runway, and 3-point with a crosswind, gusty or not. With a steady wind straight down the runway, it doesn’t really matter either way.

[@steeldesignerpro261]

Most Pitts 12 pilots will say they should never be wheeled on. The prop clearance is very small. I have known pilots who did it out of ignorance much to the panic of the aircraft owner. The margin is quite small.

[@LetsGoAviate]

Yeah I'd say so, but the Pitts can be wheels landed safely, albeit carefully. In one of my aerobatic lessons, the instructor wheels landed the Pitts S2A. The video of that flight/lesson is actually on this channel. [EDIT] I missed your reference to model 12, and as per Alex's reply below seems it's different to the S1 and S2 Pitts I was referring to.

[@alexmonroe3111]

@@LetsGoAviatea regular PITTS yes you can wheel land it. But the model-12 is a totally different PITTS. It’s huge and has the big Russian radial with a huge prop. Nothing like a standard model 2

[@LetsGoAviate]

@@alexmonroe3111 Ah yeah ok, noted.

[@steeldesignerpro261]

A Pitts 12 is a different beast all together. My memory is the MT prop is Ø98" and may be bigger for the higher HP versions of the M-14. I had the pleasure of riding in the original prototype A/C and was forbidden from wheel landings. My favorite technique has been the slow wheel landing. Fly it down like a 3 point and then raise the tail to stick the mains. This does not use up extra runway and prevents ballooning. @@LetsGoAviate

[@PDZ1122]

During WW2 and before there were only a few aircraft that were regularly wheel landed. The C47 was one but it was a structural reason; when heavily loaded it could bend the fuselage if stalled to high above the runway. Same with the earlier Ford Trimotor. The Corsair was landed in a tail low attitude because of turbulence over the tail at high AoA... EVERY other aircraft manual or instructional, British, US or German , teaches three point landings. Show me one that doesn't, and it will be a rare exception. What's more, none of them show this currently fashionable technique of shoving the stick way forward, forcing the tail up as soon as possible and then violently rotating. I see no benefit in wheel landings whatsoever. The tailwheel steers. It doesn't steer when it's up in the air. In my Maule I never resorted to wheel landings, even in the gustiest crosswind. Racing down the runaway with a crosswind and your tail sticking up takes twice the runway length, higher touchdown speed, less braking , you're more susceptible to side gusts and as you slow down, guess what: you're now in the same position as you would have been had you landed three point in the first place. It's illogical. Whatever perceived benefits there are they are outweighed by the negatives. I think it became fashionable among nosewheel pilots who were (badly) trained to just fly the airplane onto the ground instead of properly flaring. My 2cents. Worth about $2,40.

[@LetsGoAviate]

"Fashionable"? 🤣 The wheels landing is a tool/skill, and a pilot should have many tools. That's all it is, nothing more, nothing less - at least to me. I certainly don't know anything about being fashionable. Thanks for the comment, I didn't know that about the C-47 / DC-3.

[@Lt_Tragg]

Wheel landings in my Funk with its oleo struts generally result in bouncing down the runway at stall or otherwise. 3pts are always smoother in it. The tailwheel is locked to the rudder directly. Brakes are mechanical. Differential steering in like steering a boat at best.

[@willjohnson3907]

Been in the cropdusting industry for years and I’ve never seen a single 502/602/802 do a three point landing. I do three points in my 402 but they say it’s easier because I have much shorter gear legs

[@LetsGoAviate]

​@@willjohnson3907 ​Interesting. Now that you mention it, I've got video clips of the 802 doing a bunch of wheels landings, but no 3 pointers. But they are all so bouncy, you'd think the 3 pointer would be easier.

[@janskibinski6847]

Just curious as to your opinion on wheel landings being "preferred" with Globe Swifts over three point landings.

[@flycatchful]

It all depends on wind velocity and direction.

[@craig7083]

I always three point my Stinson 108 because even a wheel landing soon becomes three point and the sooner all wheels are on the ground I feel absolutely in control. One technique I use when I need tail rudder control at low speeds is to input the rudder in the direction I want the nose to turn then momentarily nudge the throttle. Works great even up to 30 knot gusts.

[@kentmichaelsen8212]

I owned a 108-3 about 40 years ago (when it was only 40 years old or so.) Metal wings and a Franklin engine. What a sweet airplane Stinson made!

[@redfalco21]

There is no universal recipe. It’s not “paint-by-numbers.” Wheel landings are possible, but discouraged in the Extra, for example. Most pilots breaking the main gear in Extras are dicking around with wheel landings. The Extra handles big crosswinds pretty well in the three-point attitude and there is a much lower chance of side-loading the gear.

[@bolenander6291]

Rans S-9 and probably the S-10 can not be wheel-landed. And it is not because of prop-clearance but the wheels are too far in front of the CG so the tail drops down directly when the wheels hit the grond, increasing the alfa and you take off again, usually with a not desired result ...

[@rotorhead2877]

Actually one taildragger I have owned that requires wheel landings only is the Pitts Model 12 due to the length of the prop.

[@mhoeltken]

Why would a long prop prevent a threepointer?

[@kyleeames8229]

2:43 My grandfather used to have one of those!

[@mazlinger]

Sukhois cannot be two pointed for both landing and takeoff due to the very little prop clearance they have…

[@alexarnoldy]

I had a Bushby Mustang II, which uses a laminar airfoil. The stall characteristics for that plane are sudden with little pre-stall buffet and a sharp wing drop (to the right on mine). That combined with stiff main gear legs meant three point landings were extremely difficult to pull off well. I bounced my way down many runways until I figured out that a wheel landing could help avoid those problems. After that, bounced landings were fairly rare and I greased more landings than I could count. Also, the plane had a naturally aft CG so using the brakes at any point in the landing was never a problem. A Cessna 120, however, will definitely punish you for being too heavy on the brakes at speed (tail up or down).

[@georgeblackwell1881]

Pitts model 12...3 point only

[@GroovesAndLands]

The terminology of this is interesting. "3 point" is obvious and intuitive; you're touching at 3 points simultaneously. Why not call the other a "2 point" landing??

[@LetsGoAviate]

Not sure, I didn't make up the terminology 😆 But likely because the 3 point will only be a 3 point touchdown if there is little or no crosswind. Doing a "3 point" touchdown in a crosswind, with aileron into the wind like you should, touchdown will be on the windward main wheel and tailwheel, with the leeward main wheel in the air. In effect this will is a 2 point touchdown. So if we also call a wheel landing a 2 point it will get confusing 🙂

[@rech-ka]

The rear parachute will save you from a somersault

[@madcotter0074]

I wheel just to protect my tiny tailwheel as much as I can.

[@cameronmolt5649]

Im able to do both interchangeably. And..... fight!

[@00timf66]

Europa mono wheel can't be wheeler landed

[@gliderfan6196]

DC-3 was mains first and threepoint was discouraged, no?

[@captratty2167]

In nearly 50 years of on/off association with the DC 3 and 3000 hours actually flying it, I never saw any official documentation discouraging or prohibiting 3 point landings. I have seen the statement that a mishandled three point landing could result in wing drop at the stall (the DC3 did have a nasty power on stall) and the potential to damage the fuselage if it dropped in from a too high flare (duh!). In various operational manuals I have seen various recommendations regarding crosswind landing techniques - some good and some dubious. All recommend wheeling it on (understandable!) and various crosswind limitations from as low as 15 knots to as high as 21 knots, but these were operator imposed limitations. Somewhere I recall that the ‘demonstrated’ crosswind was 17 knots. All that means is that on the day that they certified it in a particular airworthiness category, the test pilot found 17 knots to do the handling test. However different countries make their own rules, so varying limitations and prohibitions for such an old aircraft type would be quite likely.

[@gliderfan6196]

@@captratty2167 Thanks for the insight. So it seems it was the opposite, mains were encouraged. I'll have to investigate if Li-2 was handled in a similar way behind the Iron Curtain.

[@chipcity3016]

The object of landing is facilitated by the absence of energy used to produce lift. Their for landing with with more energy than less is counter productive. In my 40 years of flying tail draggers there is not one valid argument I've heard for not landing three point.

[@alexmonroe3111]

PITTS model-12 only 3 point. You don’t even run it on the mains during take off. Pretty sure the prop clearance isn’t great

[@LetsGoAviate]

Yeah I saw your reply on another comment, thanks. Reminds me of the P-47 Thunderbolt which I seem to remember can't be wheels landed or even the tail lifted on takeoff due to prop clearance either, but obviously an extremely rare aircraft today.

[@alexmonroe3111]

@@LetsGoAviate yeah hmm, I didn’t know that. I luckily got to see the restored p-47 razor back “Bonnie” at both Oshkosh and the Reno air races. I don’t remember if they ran I on the mains or not though. It does have a massive prop on it.

[@williampaden7774]

Don't forget the go around ....

[@birddogaustria2103]

The US ARMY AR FORT RUCKER ALABAMA ONLY TOUGHT FULL STALL 3 POINT LANDINGS

[@soaringflightgliderrides506]

G109b POH says 3 point only.

[@LetsGoAviate]

First type commented on here for which only one of the two landings are allowed by the POH. Thanks!

[@AlaskaRog]

It’s “wheel landing” not “wheels landing.”

[@alexmonroe3111]

Dc3 can’t be 3-pointed either. It has a locking tailwheel so you can’t steer it. Also once the tail is lowered you lose all rudder authority. Many dc3s have been ran off the runway due to this. Lower the tail and you lose all ability to steer the plane

[@captratty2167]

I was taught both wheel and three point landings in DC3s for Papua New Guinea highland operations. The three pointer was preferable on short, rough and often wet/soft strips. Fortunately winds are generally not too strong in those areas. At the other extreme, I also flew the DC 3 in Scotland and the Shetland Islands, where 25 knot gusty crosswinds were par for the course. In those conditions a wheeler with lots of into-wind aileron countered by opposite rudder during the rollout was essential. Fortunately most British DC3 s had been modified with heavy duty disc brakes, so as the tail came down directional control was good if your feet knew what to do. At the other end of the scale, I had a home built Sonex tail dragger. It was the world’s easiest aircraft to three point, but I felt that it did not have enough prop clearance to risk wheeling it on.